Uterine curette.



No. 637412] l Patented Nov. I9, 190|.

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M D WOOD Admlmstrator UTE'RINE CURETTE. (Application mea oct. 4, i960.)

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Unirs STATES Fries.;-

ATENT SETH D. BOWKER, OF KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI; MARTIN D. WOOD ADMINISTRATOR OF SAID BOWKER, DEOEASED.

UTERINE CURETTE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 687,112, dated :November 19, 1901'.

Application tiled October 4,1903. Serial No. 32,015. (No Inodel y The object of the instrument is to clean outI the inside of the uterus and remove any diseased surface or adhered afterbirth or to remove fung'ous growths.

With this objectin view my invention consists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts, which will be hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claim.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view of the instrument with the spring-blades closed, showing one position of the blades when open in dotted lines. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same, showing the central rod partly in section. Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line a b of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a detail view.

The instrument comprises the outer sleeve or casing 2, the externally-threaded tube 3, lying within the casing, the central rod 4, and the spring-blades 5. The outer end of rod 4 is drilled out, as shown in Fig. 2, so as to leave a thin tubular portion 6', and beyond the bottom of this portion `a smaller perforation is drilled and tapped for the screw 7.

The blades 5, preferably four in number, are made of watch-spring steel or the like, and the temper is withdrawn from their ends, so that the ends can be bent for connection to rod 4 and tube 3. The incurving portions of the outer ends of the blades pass through notches 2l in the ends of the tubular portion 6 and are then curled, substantially as shown in Fig. 2, with their ends projecting into or through perforations 17. The notches 21 are deep enough to permit some movement of the curved portions of springs while the screw 7 is tight. While I prefer this manner of attaching the blades to the end of the rod7 I do not Wish to limit myself to the exact construction shown. The opposite ends of blades 5 are bent inwardly "and are held loosely in perfor-ations in thel end 8 of tube `3. The

gagement from tube 3 by the end of the casing 2. The casing 2 is made .from two sections, which are permanently secured to the intermediate bushing 9, which has internal screw-threads engaging the external threads on tube 3. It will `thus be seen that relative longitudinal motion between tube 3 and casing 2 may be had by holding the handle 10, which is rigidly secured to tube 3, and rotating the casing 2 between the thumb and linger. The knurled tlauge 12 is a convenience for this purpose, but is not essential.

through a perforation in handle l0 andis provided with screw-threads for engagement with the thumb -nut 14. A spline -groove 15 is this groove is engaged bya pin 16, tightly secured in the handle 10, for preventing relative rotation between the rod 4 and tube 3. Ro-

the rod 4 into the tube 3, and thereby spreads or curves the spring-blades 5 to any extent that may be required. The dotted lines in may be held. The thumb-nut bearing against the handle 10 holds the blades in any required position. The movement of the casing 2 around the blades provides a further adjustas it will be clearly understood that the cas ing 2 can be advanced until it covers a greater portion of the length of the blades, or it may vbe set in any intermediate position, so that when the rod 4'is retracted by thumb-nut 14 the only portion of the blades that can curve outwardly is the portion between the screw and the end of the casing 2.

The instrument is quickly and easily cleaned by first moving the casing 2 toward the handle 10, so as to release the blades 5 from the perforations in the end of tube 3, and then removing the thumb-nut 14 from the rod 4. The rod may then be withdrawn from the tube, and the casing 2 may be entirely sepsprings are normally prevented from disen-' tation of thumb-nut14in one direction draws Fig. lindicate approximately, if not exactly, v one of the curvatures into which the blades 5 The outer end of rod 4 passes slidingly formed in the threaded portion of rod 4, and

ment of the blades to different-sized cavities,

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arated from the tube by rotating it until the threaded bushing 9 passes off the end of the tube. To assemble the instrument after clearing, the casing 2 is screwed back on the tube 3 nearly to the handle, so as to leave the end of the tube exposed. The rod 4 is inserted in the perforations in the tube 3. A small rubber band or Washer placed around the blades Will hold the blades in position until the casing is turned to cover these ends of the blades, and the saine washer if pushed into the end of the casing around the springs will exclude blood or other luid to some extent from the casing. Vhen the instrument is withdrawn from the uterus, the substances detached by the blades 5 are caught by the blades and removed.

Having now fully described my invention,

SETH D. BOVVKER.

lVitnesses:

M. L. LANGE, K. M. IMBODEN. 

